The Fierce The Black and The Wicked
by Kassandra21
Summary: One-shot (written in 2 hours ). AU in Ancient Egypt: The basic idea is Atem, Seto and Bakura, despite their differences team up to fight an enemy of Egypt. I assume a childhood relationship between them.


**A/N: **Ok, this is what you get when Kassandra listens to music late at night XD. Well, the thing is, I was listening to one of my favorite Manowar albums, "Hail to England" and as soon as the song "Blood of my Enemies" (which is my favorite) started playing I had this idea. I just HAD to write it. The song speaks of an epic battle but I won't go further on that, at the end of the description I have a youtube link and lyrics. At first I had thought of Marik as the third but I wanted to place it in ancient Egypt and I think Bakura/Akefia is more badass than Marik XDDD. So, the Fierce is Seto, the Black is Atem and the Wicked is Bakura. The title is inspired by the second lyric of the first verse of the song. I strongly recommend you listen to it while reading. I might be writing a miultichapter based on this.

**The Fierce, The Black and The Wicked**

The sun hadn't yet risen in the valley of the kings... The sky still had the purple colors of midnight... It was a few hours before the dawn.. The desert sand was disturbed by the raging hooves of three horsemen, each one coming from different directions. The one coming from the west, was a -strangely for an Egyptian- white haired man. He wasn't old so his hair was not white because of age. His horse was brown, he wore a red coat-like cape and had a double cross shaped scar on his right cheek. His eyes had a wicked look and a devious smirk was painted on his face as he rode. The man coming from the east was almost completely covered in a brown cape that was swaying in the gushing wind created by the rapid movement of his white horse. Only his eyes were visible. They had the color of the afternoon sky and their look was fierce and cold. The man coming from the west was royalty. It was obvious. He had a huge black stalion and his naked skin was covered in jewelery. The dark purple linen of his cape was almost invisible as it had the same color as the sky behind him... His eyes were dark crimson and their look reflected determination.. But the most characteristic feature about him was his hair... Not only was it tri-colored -he had golden bangs and the back of his head was black with a crimson trim on the edges-, but also it was spiky, almost star-shaped. The three men stopped simultaneously, exactly in the middle of the valley. They looked at each other, almost as if investigating one another, but what was most obvious in their looks was that each of them was waiting for one of the others to speak first. The man on the black horse broke the silence.

"So you came" he said in a flat, rather deep voice. He turned his look to the white-haired man who was now grinning as if he was extremely content about something. "From him... I kind of expected it..." he said pointing to the man with the cloak without looking at him.. "but you surprised me... Bakura... The King of thieves... Coming to the aid of the very rulers that are after him... I am indeed pleasantly surprised".

Bakura cackled rather loudly looking at him straight in the eyes, with that devious wicked look of his. " Don't flatter yourself Prince... I didn't come to help _you..._" he said in a rather ironic tone of voice. " I plan to rule this land one day... Not long from now... So I figured... I don't want anyone else claiming my prize before I get to...". The Prince frowned a little.

"Very well... Your motives are not of great importance anyway... As long as you perform" he said plainly. However his tone had become slightly more familiar.

"I see your style is still as dreadful as ever" he mocked the thief who was wearing only a pair of white shorts and a golden chain besides his red cape. Bakura scoffed.

"It's still better than yours... Ladies in the whore houses wear less jewelery than you" he returned the insult. The Prince smirked.

"I am royalty... It's in the dress code." then he turned to the third man who had been silent all this time and his look was obviously annoyed by the meaningless styling conversation. "Don't you think it's time you got rid of that cloak Seto?... Everyone knows who you are here... And hopefully the ones that will come to see you for the first time won't live to tell the tale...". The cloaked man reluctantly removed the hood of his cloak to reveal a rather well shaped face that accompanied his big cerulean eyes along with his chocolate brown hair. His look hadn't changed a bit. It was strict and quite annoyed. On the skin of his face, namely on his right cheek and his forehead, he had the symbols of the Desert Serpents, the Guardians of Renenutet, an elite team of renegade vigilantes that protected the furthest villages of Egypt, them from thieves and pillagers, taking the law in their hands... Seto was their leader. A runaway former High-Priest was a most suited frontman for such an organization... However none other than the two men that were standing before him knew of his true identity...

"Is this why we came here? To talk fashion?" he said in contempt. "Frankly, I have better things to do with my time" he added. However he knew, their purpose was much more serious than that silly conversation.

"Same as always Seto" the Prince said smirking. "You haven't changed a bit. If my father found out of your identity he would be devastated... Let alone he'd disinherit me and I'd never get to become the Pharaoh" he chuckled a little as the thought seemed ridiculous to him. He was more than sure to become the Pharaoh... He had what it took. And tonight was the night that would prove it once and for all...

"Speaking of which... Are you sure about this... Future Pharaoh?" he said that last phrase in a rather mocking tone of voice. "I mean... Me and him.." he continued, pointing at Bakura "we're outlaws...This is our thing... But you.. You're the Prince of Egypt... Are you sure you're ready for such a bold move? What if we fail?" he finished his sentence. The Prince looked at him with his crimson eyes full of determination. They had a strange darkness in them. At some point Seto would swear they turned completely black... But it was probably his imagination.

"I was the one who summoned you here wasn't I?" he paused but only briefly as this was a retorical question. "Besides, Bakura has Diabound, you have the Blue Eyes White Dragon and I have Exodia... We can't fail... Frankly if we lose to them... Maybe they are worthy to take over Egypt" he said chuckling. Of course that was a scenario that in his head wasn't even plausible.

"I can take them with the Diabound alone. I don't need you losers" Bakura bragged. The Prince looked at him as if saying 'seriously?'.

"If I thought you could I would have obviously sent you alone out there... But you can't... Trust me... Their bad intentions are not the only thing they have hidden pretty well from my father..." He looked to the south. The small expiring fires of a large military camp as long as the tips of some of the bigger tents, were visible.

"Are you sure they won't be expecting us?" Bakura asked, also turning his gaze at the camp.

"Yes," the Prince answered plainly " I just returned from the peace offering this morning... Even if they have an idea we might attack, which personally I think they don't, they cannot possibly think we shall do it so soon" His eyes pierced the horizon. "Now is the right time."

The other two men rode so that they were all three placed in a line , with the Prince in the middle. Without averting his eyes from their destination he delivered his last warning to them. Despite his big talk, he knew...

"Bakura, Seto... I want you both to know that although I am positive we will be succesful, there is a high chance that none of us will survive this..." of course he meant that the energy that they would have to use to give full power to their soldiers, ergo their monsters, would most likely drain their life force down to the last drop. But he was ready for this. The cause was too important for him to cower now.

"Are you ready for this?"

"YES" they both answered in one voice. Truth was none of the three really believed they were going to die.

"Very well " he said taking his diadhank out and placing it over his wrist. Bakura and Seto did the same. The Prince took his horse's leash and extended the hand that carried the diadhank. His eyes were dripping fire. He drew a huge smirk on his face.

"Gentlemen... Tonight, we are soaking the desert sand with the blood of our enemies... YAAAAA!" he yelled and hit his horse with his feet giving the command to move. The other two did the same after him.

The three horsemen, the Prince, the Thief and the Vigilante rode through the darkness as their monsters started materializing over them. Atem, the Prince of Egypt had Exodia the Fobidden one, Bakura the King of Thieves had the almightly Diabound and Seto the Desert Serpent had the Blue Eyes White Dragon. They entered the camp, where the soldiers had barely risen from their beds. The Diabound started scorching the tents hastily, as the creatures were not in their full power yet. The other two waited before they attacked with the creatures and took out the swords... Heads were flying like the flame sparkles when you disturb a burning fire. The clothes and skin of the three men were soon the color of fresh blood. Exodia and the Blue Eyes were attaching the west wing while the Diabound had taken the right side. It seemed that it wouldn't be a long fight as despite the puny attempts of the, undoubtedly numerous, soldiers to fight back, numbers was all they had. The surprise before the dawn and the almighty creatures had rendered their defences less than useless. However, as Bakura was ridding his schimitar from the gutty remainds of a soldier he had just slaughtered he noticed a horde approaching from the north... The Prince was right... They did hide backup... They never came for peace...

"ATEM, SETO!" he yelled and pointed out the cloud of dust the unexpected riders were creating. The two men turned their eyes to see a whole legion of very well armed AND armored soldiers.

"Bastards!" Atem screamed. Seto retrieved his Blue Eyes from killing half-asleep pawns and placed himself on the way of the incoming riders. The magnificent luminous creature positioned itself right above and behind its master.

"Now my dragon... It's time to dance" Seto said with a smirk. "GO BLUE EYES!" he ordered and the dragon released a hellish howl that would make an average person pee in their pants... Twice. The riders seemed to be taken temporarily aback from the creature's fierce appearance. The dragon was bathed in a strong blinding light and it was about to unleash it's lethal beam. However the soldiers only stopped in order to regroup and be separated in three teams.

"Bakura! They're coming your way! However Bakura had put Dianbound back in, as he needed to recharge its vital energy. The case was the same for Atem. The Blue Eyes was now the only creature in the battlefield and soon it would have to retreat as well.. It kept attacking and scorching the riders, however they were swift, and most importantly, they were too many.

"Ah fucking Ra... Diabound come out!" Bakura exclaimed as he realised that three men with swords and a dragon were not enough to win this battle. He kept raising his schimitar and chopping off heads, hands legs, whatever he could. His weapon was by far the lightest and he was extremely skilled at it so he was undoubtedly the best in man to man combat... As he rode through the enemies swaying his sword in every direction, he noticed that Atem was surrounded and cornered. He had those men, no doubt, but Bakura noticed a small team approaching him from behind.

"ATEM! BEHIND YOU!" he screamed at the top of his lungs, but it seemed Atem's reflexes, superhuman as they were, were not enough to repulse the more than 50 men that had surrounded him. One of them managed to give him a good strike. He didn't fall, but Bakura could see that he was bleeding. Seto was too busy trying to keep the main body of soldiers from entering the campsite..

"Dammit! Diabound! Protect the Prince!" he commanded and the snake-tailed creature left his side and put itself between the Prince and his pursuers. The men pulled back but they kept striking the creature... Since Bakura had let the Diabound out before its power was fully charged, the simple weapons could now somehow hurt it, but nothing serious. Atem however was not doing so good. A few moments after the Diabound covered him, he fell on his knees holding his stomach. He was already covered in blood from head to toe, however now blood was flowing from inside him. He even coughed some. Bakura and Seto looked at each other and nodded. They didn't speak, but they both were thinking the same thing _"We have to get him out _of here!". However as soon as they started moving towards him, he yelled at them, still on his knees.

"BAKURA, SETO, GET AWAY, NOW! AS FAR AWAY..." he stopped to cough and continued " AS FAR AWAY AS YOU CAN!". The two guys blinked and looked at him as if he was joking. He had to be joking if he thought they'd leave him to be slaughtered like a lamb. They kept moving to his direction...

"I AM TELLING YOU. GET OUT OF THE FUCKING WAY!" he yelled again.. Then they realised.. He had a plan. They looked at each other again and then at him and they nodded. Immediately after, they started running, one to the east, the other to the west, as they had come. From a somewhat safe distance, they could barely see the Prince, arm his diadhank. The horde of the riders were almost at his position, swarming on him like a pack of wolves. The Prince chanted and the mighty creature appeared behind him. That stopped the horsemen on their tracks temporarily. Atem used his last strength to lift himself from the ground. He looked at the tresspassors with his eyes of darkness... They were black as night now... He raised his hand... Seto and Bakura knew...

"That idiot... He's going to use up his last energy... to fire up Exodia's ultimate attack..." Seto murmured

"He'll get himself killed! THAT IDIOT!" Bakura exclaimed.

But it was too late to stop him. His hand was pointing at the sky. With one swift, abrupt move he pointed it to his enemies that were at him again and he gave the order.

"EXODIA OBLITERATE!"

The mighty beast brought its two hands together and gathered the energy of light, draining Atem's life force. Both Exodia and Atem started glowing with a strong yellow light. The beam between Exodia's hands became unbearably strong, so that even Seto and Bakura that were far away, had to cover their eyes. Finally, Exodia launched his fierce attack, devastating everything within the reach of his huge beam. After a few seconds there was nothing and no one left alive in the battlefield. The only thing that covered the air was the disgusting smell of burning flesh and bones. The thief and the renegade took their hands off their eyes, as the first rays of the sun appeared in the valley. The both immediately rode to the battlefield to find everything scorched...

And there... Over the edge of big sand dune... there he was... Prince Atem, lying face down in the sand. Both men rode to him. At least he hadn't been burnt to death by his own monster... But his life energy... And he was also wounded. Could he really have survived such an ordeal?

Seto who had had some medical training kneeled next to him and lifted his body from the ground. He was covered in sand grains clumbed with the blood all over his body. Seto cleaned an area on his neck with his hand and checked his pulse. He waited a little and after some moments he felt some pressure.

"He's alive" he said plainly. Bakura smirked.

"Figures"

"We gotta take him out of here... Tend to his wounds..." Seto stated.

"Well, your lair is in the other side of the desert and we CANNOT take him to the palace... No matter what he says, after tonight, he'll probably be more wanted than you and me" Bakura smirked again. "My cave is not far away from here, let's take him there". Seto nodded and they headed to the thief's cave. As soon as they got there, they laid Atem on a comfortable bed, cleaned him and Seto performed some healing techniques he was familiar with, hoping they'd be enough to help the Prince get his lost energy back. They both stayed at his bedside for several hours, mostly staring at the void and not talking. After what seemed to be like centuries Bakura opened his mouth.

"You know... This reminds me... When we were kids... And he was bitten by that cobra by the Nile... We were like this all night... Difference was I had to hide under the bed when someone came to check on him" the thief chuckled. Seto didn't say anything... just sighed.

"Ah.. those... were... good times" they heard a tiresome but very much alive, deep voice... They both turned around to see their childgood friend's crimson eyes open and a blissful smile on his face. When he saw their looks the smile became a smirk "You thought I'd die didn't you?" he said triumphantly.

"Well, can you blame us?" Seto answered sarcastically. Bakura grinned.

" I knew you wouldn't die... It would be too easy. And you can't get rid of a bad pain in the ass so easily" he said as he lifted himself from the ground. "This calls in for a little drink" he said and moved to his pantry to get the alcohol

Atem sat on the bed carefully not to open his wound that Seto had so skillfully bandaged.

"What the hell man? Were you preparing me for a mummy already?" he half-pouted as the bandages were so tight he could barely move his waist.

"You're welcome" Seto answered sarcastically again. "Ah here comes the wine" he declared as he saw Bakura practically jumping his way to them like a monkey.

"Who said anything about wine? This is the best rum in the seven seas my ignorant friend"

"Rum?" Seto hadn't heard of that spirit before. And he was a heavy drinker.

"Yes, it's the drink of the sailors... I have a pirate friend who brings me a couple of barrels. It's produced in a strange island in the south." Bakura said as he filled the three golden goblets with the strong smelling drink. He gave one to each of the others. Atem took it and gave a strange investiagative look at it.

"This is the royal emblem... Did you get these from the palace?" he asked giving the thief a glare lifting his brow. The thief just grinned and raised his cup.

"KANPAI!" he yelled. Seto sighed, Atem smirked and they both raised their cups to meet Bakura's.

"KANPAI!"

"KANPAI!"

The End~


End file.
